Why do Borussia Dortmund produce so many top players?
Although Borussia Dortmund fans would far prefer to see the club produce titles and trophies, it is an undeniable fact that Der BVB have been brilliant at bringing excellent players to the forefront of the sport in the past few decades. Sure, it’s hugely annoying when Bayern Munich sweep in and take the best players away, but how is it that Die Borussen are able to produce so many world-beaters in the first place?
From Marco Reus to Shinji Kagawa via Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Jude Bellingham, some of the world’s top players have developed until the watchful eye of a Borussia Dortmund coach at one point or another.
The Pursuit of Talented Youngsters
When you look at the nuts and bolts of the players that make their way through the Borussia Dortmund ranks, you can soon see that Der BVB actually produced few of them. Names such as Jaydon Sancho and Jude Bellingham aren’t German names, with the players having been persuaded to head to Signal Iduna Park because they know that they will be well-coached before being given the opportunity to make it elsewhere in the world.
The expectations at Dortmund aren’t as high as at the likes of Bayern Munich, so it’s the perfect place to learn.
Borussia Dortmund have signed 23-year-old Julian Brandt from Bayer 04 Leverkusen.
He was outstanding in the second-half of the Bundesliga season, and getting him for €25 million – just over a third of the fee received for Christian Pulisic – is remarkable value. pic.twitter.com/v3LV9NK0Qy
— SCOUTED (@scoutedftbl) May 22, 2019
For their part, the players know that they will get the chance to play from an early age at Dortmund where they might not get that luxury somewhere else. Although Der Borussen aren’t expected to win the Bundesliga every season, they are at least expected to do well enough to mean that the players will get to take part in big games and even play in the Champions League from time to time.
The key to Dortmund’s success isn’t so much in having a brilliant academy as much as it is in having excellent scouts who can spot a future talent.
Why Youngsters Love to Play There
The simple truth is that Dortmund put more value in youth than many of Europe’s other top sides do. The fact that they get to play in front of 80,000-plus people every other week, with the Yellow Wall swaying backwards and forwards as the game plays out, gives young players an experience that they couldn’t get anywhere else.
The club looks to the big clubs around Europe and finds youngsters that they believe deserve a chance in the first team that aren’t being given one at their current club. Opportunities to play will always trump money for most.
It is why Jadon Sancho chose to leave Manchester City for time in Europe and why Erling Haaland turned down overtures from Manchester United to head there. Jude Bellingham also decided that Manchester wasn’t the place for him when he left Birmingham City, rocking up at the Westfalenstadion instead.
That Haaland eventually moved to the Etihad, Sancho to Old Trafford and Bellingham to Real Madrid is proof that they will not only get first team opportunities but will also not be blocked from moving elsewhere if the price is right.
The Scouts Know What They’re Doing
The Borussia Dortmund scouts are tasked with a reasonably simple job: find the best 16 to 19-year-olds in the world and persuade them to play for Der BVB. The fact that the club has so much about it that the players love playing there means that it is reasonably simple for the scouts to entice the young footballers out to Germany.
In reality there is plenty for the players to like, so it is down to the scouts to make sure that they find the best ones. Once they have been brought on board, it is up to the manager to ensure that he is able to blend the youngster with top-quality older players to get wins on the board.
@just_football863 From Scout to Success The Rise of Eden Terzic as Dortmund’s Coach #football #shorts #tktok #soccer #bvb #championsleague
The club’s structure is such that they know that the man in the hot-seat will be able to bring the best out of the players, which is why Der BVB are often challenging for the Bundesliga title or even winning it. It is a system that has been place since the early 2000s, seeing top-class managers like Jürgen Klopp also developing their skills at the Westfalenstadion before heading to bigger clubs.
There are, of course, some German players that make a big name for themselves playing for the black and yellow, but mostly the biggest names have been brought in from elsewhere to learn their craft before moving on.
